Stuck With You
by Anti-Twilight Forever
Summary: During a competition one weekend night, Coop and Jamie end up stuck in the same chair. Kiva is no help! Let the one-liners, fists and fluff fly! One shot. Rated T for language.


**Well, I can't sleep, and felt like writing a new Megas XLR fic, once again centered around Jamie and Coop. I guess you could count it as a mini-sequel to my story, "Small", but I'm going to try to keep it as its own story. The only similarity… is it involves fluff.**

… **These guys are going to hate me forever.**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own such an awesome show… which is a good thing since I may botch up the characters again :P**

 **JUST READ! (and enjoy :D)**

 **~XLR~**

Saturday Night's battle was one to be written for the history books. A showdown that would leave an impact on future generations, depending on the victor. The most epic of epic battles that had been spawned from epicness so epic that it's epic tale would be retold for years to come… Epically.

It was a battle Coop was determined to win… at any cost.

Even the cost of his best friend.

This was the battle…

…to see who would get the comfy chair.

Yes, seriously.

Kiva, as well as anyone else who didn't understand the duo's competition, only sat on the couch and watched in nonchalance, as they stood across from each other on opposite sides of a card-table, both of them armed with ping-pong balls, and several Styrofoam cups filled with Cola© on each side (Coop's mother forbid them to play Beer-Pong with alcohol, so they had to improvise).

"Alright, so the rules are clear: Whoever gets a ping-pong in the other guy's cup, the other guy has to drink it; Last one who drinks wins. Loser has to pay the pizza-guy!" Coop stated.

"…Have you ever played Beer-Pong before?" Jamie questioned.

"No… but I saw a movie about it, so lets do this!"

Jamie shrugged. "Alright, but I warn you, I happen to be a champion at this," He bounced his ping-pong ball on the table, though it rolled off halfway. Coop gave him a defiant smirk. "…That was just a warm-up!"

"Yeah, you're warming up- but I'm the one who'll be bringing the heat!" Coop then bounced his ping-pong ball-

*Clank! Clatter!*

…a little too hard, as he ended up knocking over all of Jamie's cups.

*Crash!*

…before the already-flimsy table broke in the middle, falling to the ground. "…'guess we should've used the coffee-table." Coop commented.

Kiva only sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I often wonder how humanity endured, with the level of this generation's intelligence," she muttered to herself.

"Want to give this up, or try something else?" Jamie commented, grabbing a dirty towel that had been lying on the floor for who-knows-how-long and soaking up the spilled soda.

"I never give up! There has to be something else we can try…" Coop replied, thinking for a bit. "How about we do another Burp-Off?"

"Nah. Your neighbors are still pissed, after your last belch set off several car-alarms."

"Hey, in my defense, I didn't know everyone was asleep before midnight!" he rubbed his chin, continuing to think. "We could arm-wrestle for it!"

Jamie scoffed. "As much as you work out? It wouldn't be fair- I'd have you beaten in seconds,"

"…if you actually had any muscle, you mean." Kiva quipped, earning a glare from the pale-skinned man.

Coop snapped his fingers. "Better idea! We get into Megas, fly into orbit, and see who can hold their breath the longest while floating in space!" he exclaimed. "First one to give in loses!"

"We would DIE, Coop!" Jamie remarked, rolling his eyes.

Coop pondered this a moment, remembering something about space being like a vacuum and the lack of oxygen causing one's eyeballs to get sucked out and their insides to implode. At least, that's how it happened in sci-fi films. "… it worked in that one _Cowboy Bebop_ episode…" he commented. "Alright, new competition- we pull up that one song from that 'Frozen' movie, and see who can listen to it the longest without snapping!"

"Dammit, Coop, I just got that song out of my head!" He crossed his arms, glowering. "…I swear, your cousin Skippy made us sit through that flick just to torture us…"

Coop was beginning to grow frustrated. "Well, what do YOU suggest we do, wise-guy?! We have to do something- and fast! 'Mecha Shark VS. Mega-Croc' is going to be on any minute!"

"Well, we wouldn't be in such a rush if you'd just surrender the chair!"

"NEVER!"

Kiva rubbed her temples. No matter how long she lived in the past, she would never get used to the idiotic banters of Coop and Jamie. "Alright, that's enough!" she finally shouted, silencing them both and sparing herself a headache. "Here's how we'll settle this- you can both RACE to the chair! First one there gets it. Simple!"

Coop and Jamie looked at each other, wondering why they never thought of that before… but had to save face so Kiva wouldn't think they were total idiots (…though, it was probably too late…). "Well… yeah, sure, if you want to make it EASY for us," Coop scoffed.

"Yeah, way too simple. I can outrun Coop, no-sweat!" Jamie added, earning a look from his best friend.

"Yeah? We'll see about that!" Coop turned towards the chair, in a ready-to-run pose (which he hadn't done in a while). "On your mark-"

"GO!" Jamie took off towards the chair, leaping into it while turning to face the television, giving a smirk. "…Oh, I'm sorry- did I win?"

Coop glared, then developed a devilish grin. "Not yet! …Remember how we used to play 'Chicken'?!"

Jamie's pupils shrunk.

 _~Quick Flashback!~_

A ten-year-old Jamie stood with his bike at the top of one hill down the street, while Coop stood by his own bike on another hill just a block down. "Ready?" Coop called.

"Bring it!" Jamie retorted, and they both raced downhill, picking up speed as they neared the gap between the hills.

Seconds before impact, Jamie realized just how larger his friend was compared to him-

*BAM!*

Too late. The stars went flying (as well as a few bike parts), and the boys were put into arm-and-leg casts by that afternoon.

 _~Back to the Future- I mean, Present!~_

After that incident, it was safe to say Jamie never wanted to play a game of 'Chicken' against Coop ever again.

Of course, he didn't have time to surrender as Coop came running towards the chair! "COWABUNGA!" Coop shouted, leaping forth.

"HOLY SHI-!" Jamie screamed, moving to leap out of the way…

*THUD!*

"OW!"

Kiva blinked, seeing that-at the angles the two had been in upon impact- they were now both in the chair: Coop sitting normally, while Jamie was scrunched up beside him, his body somewhat tilted on its side and one of his legs stuck, trapped beneath his friend's thigh. "Huh. Never thought I'd see the day when you'd finally take my advice about sharing that chair," the future-warrior commented.

"Shut up." Jamie sneered, then squirmed. "Coop, get up! You're crushing me!"

Coop shifted, trying to get up… only to discover a problem. "I can't… we're both wedged in here too tight! I'm stuck!" he replied.

"WHAT?! Dammit…! Kiva, go get some butter, or something!"

"Calm down," Kiva stated, sitting down on the couch. "If you both relax your bodies, you'll be able to slip out easily."

"Relax?! With 300 pounds of fat smashing half my body?!"

"Hey, it's no fun having your bony leg pinned against my side either, so watch it!" Coop snarled. He turned to Kiva. "Anything you can do, Kiv?"

Kiva pondered, then picked up the remote. "It depends… are you two really stuck?" she asked.

They both shifted again, struggling, but couldn't budge. "…pretty much," Jamie muttered.

She smirked. "In that case… I'm going to find a good movie on. Watching something may help you both ease down,"

Coop and Jamie gawked. "You gotta be kidding me…!" Coop griped- the last time he let Kiva pick a movie, they ended up watching a _Star Trek_ marathon, and he had to listen to Kiva point out the 'flaws' of the supposed time-era the show was set to take place in, mostly by stating how some of the technology mentioned hadn't been invented until the year 400,919, according to the history she had been taught.

"Are you serious?! You're not going to help at all?! W-What if there's an alien-invasion, or if some mutant breaks in, or worse?!" Jamie pointed out.

Kiva shrugged. "Then I'll help you both get out then. You're going to make it a lot harder if you keep acting tense," she replied, flicking through the channels until she stopped, arching an eyebrow. "What is this… 'Equestria' dimension this animated show speaks of?"

"GAAAAHHHHHH!" Jamie and Coop both screamed.

~XLR~

Thankfully the torture didn't go on, as Kiva had no interest in the logic behind 'friendship being a form of magical power possessed by different breeds of horses', and- getting tired of Coop's complaints- turned on their sci-fi movie and setting the remote near them, before heading outside. "I'm going to go do a system-check on Megas- I'll be back to check on you two and make sure you're still alive," she quipped.

"…geez, she's been hanging around my mom too much," Coop muttered, resting his face on the side of his fist. It had been almost an hour, the sun had gone down, and yet he and Jamie remained stuck in the chair.

"Just had to race for the chair, didn't you?" Jamie muttered. His trapped-leg had gone to sleep a while ago, making it twice as hard for him to move.

"I'm not the one who cheated!"

"I'm not the one who decided to play 'Chicken'!"

Coop sneered, then turned his gaze towards the television. "Whatever…" They both stared/glared at the screen a minute or so, until the movie ended, and a rerun of 'Sharknado' came on- which the two had already seen a number of times already. Coop looked around, seeing that the remote was on the end table on Jamie's side. "Pass me the remote, would ya?"

"Why?"

Coop rolled his eyes. "To scratch my back with," he replied sarcastically, then switched his tone back to serious. "To change the channel, what else?"

Jamie, not liking his friend's attitude (and still pissed about being stuck-and-crushed in a chair thanks to him) only sneered. "No way, I want to watch this."

"We've seen 'Sharknado' a million times!"

"I like the plot,"

Coop gave a deadpanned look. "You like Tara Reid, you mean." He then began to reach for the remote- though considering they were still wedged in the chair and the struggle was only making it worse, it was a vain effort. "Just… give me… the remote!"

Jamie, who grabbed the remote and was reaching it away from Coop's grasp, grunted as he tried to keep his friend from crushing him entirely. "Not… until… we're… outta here!" he retorted. Coop grabbed his outreached arm, gripping it tightly and trying to tug it towards his free hand. Jamie now held on with both hands, keeping up his relentless fight, but it proved difficult as Coop outmatched him in brawn.

 _If I had known we'd just end up arm-wrestling anyway, I would've taken him up on that offer!_ Jamie thought, as sweat began to trickle down his face. If he had known the current situation would've been this much of a pain in the ass, he would've surrendered a bit of his pride and accepted an arm-wrestling challenge (…and probably make up the excuse that he 'let' his friend win because the competition was 'too easy').

"Let go!/You let go!/Gimme it!/Up yours!/I'll throttle you!/Try and I'll break it!" the two buddies-at-war snapped back-and-forth, Coop yanking on Jamie's arm while Jamie tried to keep the remote out of reach, tilting his hand to keep it as far away as possible…

He tipped it too far, and it slipped out of his palm…

*thunk!*

The two paused their battle, seeing the remote had fallen on the floor, the back of it popping off and the batteries rolling out under the chair. Even if they were still intact, the controller was out of their reach anyway.

"SEE WHAT YOU'VE DONE?!" they both snapped in unison, glaring at each other. "WHAT?! I DIDN'T DO IT! IT'S YOUR FAULT! I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING! …STOP SAYING WHAT I'M SAYING- ARRGHH, WOULD YOU CUT IT OUT?!"

Kiva walked in, having heard their shouts from outside (as well as anyone else in a three-block radius). "Still having problems, I see." She commented, seeing the duo were face-to-face, ready to snap each other's necks. "And, no doubt, ignoring my advice about _relaxing_ ,"

Coop and Jamie pointed at each other- still speaking in unison. "He started it! …STOP THAT!"

The future-warrior unleashed yet another heavy sigh. Thankfully, years of training in a galactic force dead-set on conquering the Glorift had prepared her for handling any kind of dispute- even ridiculous ones. "Alright, see you in the morning, then." She then headed for the stairs.

"Hold it! Where are you going?!" Jamie demanded. "We could use some help, you know!"

"Yeah, Kiv! What gives?" Coop added.

"Back in my time, we had rookies who would get carried away with challenging each other, outside of battle. When it got out of hand, we had them locked up together- they had to work out their differences and remember they are comrades in war; otherwise they would pose as a threat to our unit, and would jeopardize future missions."

Coop and Jamie arched eyebrows. "Why not just keep them separated?"Jamie questioned.

"Separation would not solve anything- if they could not remember they were comrades, then they would no longer be part of the unit, and be left on their own to survive," Kiva crossed her arms, thinking back to her time. "Given the circumstances of our struggle, they didn't take their time in making amends- especially after losing too many allies already."

"So… in other words… Jamie and I have to stay stuck, until we make up?" Coop guessed.

"Exactly."

Coop and Jamie looked at each other… then feigned smiles, shaking hands. "Hey, sorry buddy!"

"Apology accepted, pal!" Jamie added.

Kiva shook her head. "It has to be sincere. …Have a good night," with that, she went upstairs.

Jamie clenched his fist, shaking it at her. "Just wait 'til we get out of here, you heartless bi-"

Coop clapped a hand over his mouth. "Dude, what did we talk about last week? 'Insult Kiva, and she'll make your life hell'," he whispered. "And right now, we're having enough of a bad time as it is, thanks to you!"

"Me?! You're the one who always fights over the chair!"

"Which I shouldn't have to- I always win either way!"

Jamie scoffed. "Not this time. And since I beat you, you couldn't handle it and came at me at Mach 5!"

"You took a head start! Therefore, I won by default!"

"Bullshit! I would've beaten you anyway- I was just sparing you the humiliation!"

"No- YOU just didn't want to be humiliated in front of Kiva!" Coop then smirked. "You hate looking like a loser in front of her, don't ya?"

"N-No… I just hate losing entirely! Especially when someone like her is making comments afterwards!"

"Or… because you LIKE her!"

Jamie gawked. "What?! Coop, did the blood circulation to your brain get cut off or something?!"

"Ha! I'm right, aren't I?! You like Kiva- a LOT!"

"I do not!"

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Do not!"

 _~12 more 'Do Not/Do Too's later~_

"I do NOT!" Jamie snarled, red in the face.

"Oh c'mon, admit it! …I mean, I found out you guys dated in another dimension, so the proof is there!"

Jamie gave a deadpanned look. "You also said you went bat-shit insane in that dimension, became evil, took over the planet, and Kiva was a cyborg. I HIGHLY doubt that would serve as proof. …Besides, there's a ton of hot girls out there for me, Coop! Why would I give them up for someone like Kiva?"

"Because… Kiva's the only woman who still talks to you?"

Jamie sneered. "Very funny. ..Why would you care if I liked her or not?"

Coop smirked. "No reason- just love seeing you cringe at the obvious."

The scrawny man sneered, then smirked back. "Or… YOU like her, instead!" he nudged his friend in the stomach (which wasn't too difficult, considering it was pushed against his gut anyway). "Huh? Huh? That it, Coop? Trying to pin your emotions on me? Got a little jealous of the other me in the alternate-universe, right? Right?"

"What?! No way! I-It would never work out- she's too active, I'm more of an indoors-type; she's too pushy, I'm reckless; she's from the future, I live in the now-"

"Admit it! You're in LOOOOVE with her!"

"I AM NOT!"

"YOU ARE TOO!"

"AM NOT!"

"ARE TOO!"

~ _Several more of these toddler-sounding arguments later…~_

"…ah, you wouldn't stand a chance with her, anyway," Jamie muttered, growing tired of the argument.

"Oh, like YOU would?" Coop retorted, resting his face on his fist again. He shifted, but they remained stuck. "Man… we gotta loosen up somehow…" he pushed against the arms of the chairs, as well as the back, but couldn't get it to budge. He then looked over the edge, seeing the lever that would lift up the built-in foot-rest. "Lets see if the recliner will do anything," he pulled the lever…

*Ka-Chunk!*

"Yeah… it did something…" Jamie grunted, his face contorted in pain. "IT SMASHED MY LEG MORE!"

"I can feel that…!" Coop grunted, seeing that, since Jamie's leg was under him, reclining the chair only 'lifted' his leg upward, pressing it further against him… and possibly ruining his friend's chances of ever walking again. "Let me try leaning it back," he did so, pushing backwards against the chair, lying back while Jamie stayed upright.

It worked a little, as Jamie could feel he could budge, but escape wasn't possible yet. When he tried to wriggle free, mainly by trying to free his trapped leg, he barely had any room. He tried twisting his body one way, but it only led to him being further stuck; when he tried the other way, he felt he could get loose, but unless Coop was able to lift himself, he couldn't get his leg free. "Dammit… someone's going to have to axe the chair to get us out," Jamie groused.

Coop sighed, rubbing his face, still lying back. "I'm getting tired… Maybe we should take Kiva's advice and try to relax,"

Jamie scoffed. "Like it's relaxing being crushed under your fat ass. My leg is probably numb beyond use, by now."

Coop sneered and grabbed him by the shirt-collar, getting in his face. "In that case, you can start watching movies at your own house, you whiny little prick!"

"If someone ten times your weight ran up and sat on your lap, you'd be complaining too! Next time, watch where you throw your fat around!"

Coop clenched his fist. "Alright! That did it! You cheated in a race, busted the remote controller, and gave me nothing but lip this whole time!"

"Oh, like YOU never made a crack!"

"If I wasn't stuck, I'd throw you down and make a crack in your skull!" Coop raised his fist. "In fact, I'll put one in your face-!"

"TRY IT, FAT-ASS!"

*BAM!*

Jamie got it in the eye. Thankfully, at the angle Coop was stuck in, the blow wasn't too bad. Jamie clenched his own fists, then decked him back!

*PUNCH!*

Coop rubbed his face, feeling his lip bleed. "You… are SO DEAD-!" he snarled.

"COOP! JAMIE! SETTLE DOWN ALREADY! IT'S GETTING LATE!" Coop's mother shouted from upstairs, turning out the light in the basement. "IF I HEAR ANY MORE ROUGHHOUSING DOWN THERE, YOU'LL BE SLEEPING IN THE GARAGE!"

Coop and Jamie glared at each other, but lowered their fists. One thing about Coop's mother was that you did NOT want to provoke her anger, as the woman had ways of making fighting alien-monsters seem like petting kittens. The two friends-at-war turned away from each other. The TV was still on, 'Sharknado' nearly over with, but they weren't paying attention.

"…see if I ever invite you over again," Coop sneered.

Jamie only sneered back. "I'd rather hang out in a dark alley,"

"Then go home! …After we get out," Coop turned towards the TV, glaring.

Jamie looked away. With the lights off, the room was cast in darkness, the only light coming from the TV, which cast shifting-shadows on the wall. Normally, he hated the dark, but this time he was thankful the lights were out, just so Coop couldn't see him wincing. _This is the only home I have…_ he thought.

With the quietness between them, and the fact that the sci-fi channel started showing _E.T,_ (which Jamie found to be boring, despite it was one of Steven Spielberg's most groundbreaking films), he began to dose off.

~ **XLR~**

Kiva sat up in bed, feeling a bit of guilt. It wasn't like her to leave Coop and Jamie to settle a quarrel themselves (as she knew there was a 99.9-percent chance it would end in utter disaster), but once in a while she had to draw the line somewhere. She had been training Coop how to pilot Megas properly (though she had a feeling he barely paid much attention), had to deal with Jamie's attitude in every kind of situation, and- of course- she was trapped in the past… And if the two comrades she came to gain in her scenario were going to bicker about being stuck in a chair, she wasn't going to get involved.

She heard Coop's mother yelling at the boys to settle down, giving her the notion that she should go downstairs and check on them…

 _No. You're not their babysitter- they need to learn to handle it themselves._ The future-warrior told herself, leaning back in bed. _Keep in mind, they've been dealing with each other long before you came along._

With that thought in mind, she wondered how exactly Coop and Jamie handled their arguments before her coming to the past- probably ended up brawling, with Coop being the victor, if she had to guess. Thinking about what their lives were like before her arrival lead to her wondering if her interaction in the past would affect the future. In a sense of paranoia, she was worried hers and the Glorift's banishment back in time would lead to the fateful battle they left behind in the future…

Or, perhaps it would be prevented thanks to Coop. He may be a goofball, but she noticed he managed to send the Glorift Commander into a retreat faster than most of the warriors in her time- even when his tactics were the most ridiculous she had ever seen and heard. Perhaps that's what made him the victor- his laid-back attitude and uncanny ideas cancelled out any seriousness his opponents showed in battle. It made sense- his idiocy made them too angry to think clearly, and since Coop acted on instinct (and acted fast), the Glorift never knew what to expect.

Even Kiva never knew what to expect- she expected something stupid, yet stupidity still surprised her in an impressive way.

As for Jamie…

Well, she didn't know what to expect from him, either. He was lecherous at times when it came to attractive women, wasn't the strongest when it came to combat, and tended to make a few mistakes which lead to trouble- such as when he used Coop's name to help his chances with a group of female warriors from another planet. Granted, with the right push, she believed he could show promise…

If only he could get his act together, which was where her doubt came in. He was a weak coward, barely took any responsibility for his actions, and just seemed to be extra weight…

But if there was anything she learned from hanging around the two, it was that she could never doubt someone for so long once they started to show their potential. …She was just waiting for Jamie to show his. She knew he had it in him- question was, why didn't he show it often? Why did he always have Coop do most of the work, hiding behind him most of the time?

 _I know he has the brains… somewhere… and has determination as long as he has a certain goal; so why does he act otherwise?_ She continued to wonder. Sure, she found Jamie to be a pain in the neck, and vice-versa, but she knew he had some sort of inner-strength waiting to be unleashed.

Perhaps he was just too full of pride, she guessed. He liked to assume that he was a real ladies-man, could take on anyone, and handle any kind of situation… but it seemed, quite often, when an opportunity came up for him, he would panic and back down- though not all the time, as she recalled how he did his best to fight the Glorift while Megas' control-panel was disconnected (as he had borrowed the car in order to impress a girl), managed to get them out of a bad situation while facing Magnus (in order to survive and find the planet of the Amazons)… and, according to Coop, became a no-nonsense warrior in another dimension, helping defeat their evil-counterparts (though, Coop also said he and Kiva were dating, so that possibility seemed far-fetched).

 _Perhaps if he didn't boast so much, kept his strength and weaknesses in-check, and pulled his weight a little more… maybe he could be a warrior._ Kiva thought, pondering about it, then shook her head. _Yeah. …And maybe the Glorift will want a peaceful surrender._

She looked over at the wall of the guest-bedroom, seeing a few old pictures pinned to the wall; Coop's mother had stated that Jamie used to sleep in the guest-bedroom whenever he'd spend the night during their school-days. She didn't think much of it, until she noticed a few things that were set up around the room- not only pictures, but also magazines, action-figures, movie posters, an old Gameboy, and a portable CD player. At first-glance, she would figure it was Coop's bedroom- only slightly cleaner- until she would notice how some of the posters were from movies he wasn't into (such as _Bikini Vampires II),_ and some of the magazines were about swimsuit models, proof that Jamie had stayed in this room enough times to be allowed to keep a few belongings here.

She looked at the pictures on the wall, seeing many of them had been taken within the basement (mostly Coop and Jamie playing videogames or watching movies), at a park (when they were little kids and more active), a couple at Disneyland (she didn't know why they were being held up by the shirt-collars by a guy in a Mickey Mouse costume), their highschool graduation (tossing their caps up in the air), and a few casual ones of them lounging in the backyard, working in the garage, hanging around the junkyard with Goat… and one where Coop was asleep with whip-cream in his hand, and Jamie was using a feather to tickle his nose- followed by a picture of a cream-faced Coop trapping Jamie in a headlock.

Kiva had looked at these photos before, at first trying to find out more about the two friends she had found, realizing they were as close as friends could be (Knowing this eased her guilt of leaving them stuck in a chair); but there was one thing she noticed about all the photographs: they had all been taken either at public locations or Coop's house… but none featuring Jamie's house.

As she thought about it, she realized Jamie never brought up his own family, much less invited them over… In fact, it seemed as if he never went home. Hanging out with Coop all day-and-night, only leaving when he had his share of company and wanted to have some solitude but always coming back the next day. _Does he even have a home of his own?_ She wondered, looking at all he had around the room- chances are, if she looked in the drawers, she'd probably find spare clothes.

With all this in mind- his weakness, always hanging around, and keeping stuff here- she wondered just what kind of family Jamie had come from… if he even had one.

Her wonderings kept her from sleep, and she decided she might as well check on the duo- maybe even show them (how would they put it?) some 'slack' and free them from the chair.

If they hadn't beaten each other into unconsciousness, that is.

Pulling on a robe over her pajamas (which Coop's mother insisted she have), she quietly walked down the hall. The house was quiet, which rubbed her the wrong way, as it only seemed to be a sign of trouble; she entered the basement, sneaking down the steps (knowing which ones creaked and should be skipped), until she had a view of the chair, where her friends were still stuck…

…seeing tears running down Jamie's face as he slept.

~XLR~

" _Y-You're kicking me out?! Why?!"_

" _Because you're nothing but a leech! Can't do anything for yourself, and I'm sick of it!" his step-dad sneered. "You're 18 and out of highschool- time to start earning a living, you brat!"_

" _You… you can't do this! Mom… you know I can't move out-I just graduated a week ago!"_

 _His mother turned away, unable to face him. Ever since she started to date, and soon married, his step-dad when he was seven, she had started paying less attention to her own son. …Having gotten pregnant at 16, being dumped by his biological father (now in prison), and being too much of a valley-girl to be a mother, it was clear to see she was ready to give up. She had only married his step-dad for his money- and she didn't want to throw that away. "I'm sorry, Jamie… I tried, but… this is for the best," she stated, crossing her arms. "Go find a job, a place to stay… maybe a nice girlfriend… and take good care of yourself."_

" _But… I-I don't have anywhere else to live…"_

" _Go live with that fat friend of yours! He's the only one who wants you around!" his step-dad scoffed, before they slammed the door in his face._

" _No! You can't do this! Let me in!" Jamie pounded on the door, tried opening the windows, but they had locked him out. "Please! I'll do anything! …Don't kick me out… I need you…" he fell to his knees, planting his face in the duffel bag his parents packed for him, sobbing. "Please…"_

~XLR~

"Zzzz…ugh, Mom, c'mon, we've seen _Titanic_ a hundred times…" Coop groaned, waking from his slumber upon hearing sniffling, feeling someone crying into his shirt. "*yawn* You know they meet in the afterl- huh?" groggily, he looked, seeing his assumption was off.

For one thing, _Titanic_ wasn't on- only a rerun of _The Walking Dead._

Second, he was still trapped in the chair- not trapped watching a romantic flick his mother often turned on (and wouldn't change the channel until it was over).

Third and finally, it was Jamie crying into his shirt… in his sleep. "Please… don't kick me out…" he was mumbling/whimpering in his saddened slumber. "zzzz… nowhere else to go… *sniffle*"

 _Ummm… okay, this is awkward…_ Coop thought, wishing he could back away and pretend he didn't see anything- but, such a task is impossible when you're stuck in a chair; and ignoring his friend wouldn't be easy considering he was gripping on to him like a giant pillow, staining his shirt with tears. He reached around his friend with one arm, tapping him on the head. "Hey, wake up, man. You're having a nightmare!" he whispered. He then grabbed his shoulder with his other hand, shaking him a little. "Wakey wake, Weeping Beauty… (geez, that sounded lame!)"

"Coop…?" Jamie slurred, waking from his sorrowed vision. He then noticed he was clinging to his friend- and crying! Gasping, he let go, quickly wiping his eyes. "What… why'd you wake me?"

"For one thing, you soaked my shirt," As if to emphasize this, Coop tugged his shirt to show his friend the tear-stains. "Second… you were talking in your sleep. Something about being kicked out?"

Jamie turned away, so his friend wouldn't see him blushing. "Um… you must've heard the TV. I-I don't talk in my sleep- and I wasn't crying… t-that's probably drool,"

Coop scoffed, pointing at the TV. "I've seen this _Walking Dead_ episode ten times, dude, and no one in it brought up being kicked out- and I saw you crying!" he hooked his arm around Jamie's shoulders, his tone now persuasive. "C'mon~… don't deny it. What's up?"

"Nothing! It…it was just a stupid dream," Jamie continued to look away, wishing he could pull away- though, even if he wasn't stuck, he knew he couldn't slip out of Coop's stronghold easily. "Just forget about it,"

Coop wasn't about to give up, however; the fact that his friend wasn't facing him gave him extra reason to press for answers about what kind of nightmare would cause him to cry. "No 'stupid dream' would just make you cry like that-"

"Maybe I was crying because you're crushing my leg!"As he made this excuse, Jamie shifted his trapped leg. "Ever think of that?!"

The Megas pilot blinked- true, he never considered this, but he had doubt he was crushing the leg bad enough to make his friend break down… unless the bone was snapping- if that were the case, he was surprised Jamie hadn't woken him with screaming instead of sobbing. "If that were the case, why were you mumbling about-"

"I didn't say anything! Just drop it already!" Jamie crossed his arms, turning farther away, so now the lower part of Coop's arm was pressed against his abdomen. "(…and get your frickin' arm off me…)"

Coop sighed- maybe he should just drop it and go back to sleep. Jamie was being a pain tonight, and he didn't want to get into another argument with him, especially since he only got (what time was it?) maybe ONE hour of sleep. It was clear his friend wasn't going to tell him anything, after the comments they swapped…

His brain clicked just then, remembering the last thing he said to him. Was that what his nightmare about- Coop kicking him out of his home… or out of his life?! _Geez, I didn't mean it like that…_ he thought. _'Didn't expect him to cry over it…_

He sat up a little further, keeping his arm around Jamie, trying to get a good look at his face. He noticed a bruise forming, courtesy of his punch (come to think of it, his face was sore where Jamie hit him, too); the scrawny young man had his eyes shut, as if trying to force himself back to sleep, his body tense and his face slightly red. Chances are, he wasn't going to say another word- the Megas pilot didn't think his words upset him that much, nor knew the reason why they would. Often in their verbal battles, Jamie would just ignore him for a few hours, before brushing it off and coming back to hang out… but to cry?

 _Think, dumbass! You gotta fix this!_ Coop told himself- if something he said lead Jamie to cry, it also meant it stirred up a hatred within, meaning a break in their friendship, which also meant he'd have no one to join him on road (and space) trips who wasn't a backseat driver *cough*Kiva*cough*, marathon movies and understanding the sci-fi material the way he did, swap videogame cheat-codes with as well as debate which JRPG was the best, help pay for take-out when he's short on cash… and he would probably be stuck on 'Kiva Duty', meaning the future-warrior would no doubt have him training for hours without Jamie's interference. They weren't just friends- they were partners in crime, and living alibis!

With all this in mind, he grabbed Jamie's arm with his free hand, forcing him to turn and face him. "Coop! The hell-?!" Jamie sputtered, looking at him with a wide-eyed glare… and it was easy to tell he had been crying pretty hard- and had been holding tears back. He was cut off when Coop pulled him closer, his other hand on the back of his head, planting his face in his abdomen. "Mmf?!"

"I didn't mean it," Coop told him, tightening his grip when his friend continued to struggle. "I didn't mean to… to hurt your feelings like that- I figured you'd brush it off!"

Jamie turned his head, so that he could speak. "What're you talking about?!"

"You had a nightmare about me kicking you out- that's why you were crying, right?"

Jamie groaned. "I told you to drop it… And you weren't even in the nightmare!"

"I wasn't? …oh, I figured… you know, after what I said…" Coop cleared his throat, letting go of Jamie's arm, but keeping his other arm around him. "Sorry."

The scrawny man sighed. "Whatever…" he leaned his head back, resting it on Coop's arm. "…You can pull back your arm, by the way."

Coop only bent his arms behind his head- so that Jamie's head was still rested on it. "Better?"

Jamie scoffed. "…probably would be, if we weren't trapped," he rested his own hands on his stomach, looking up at the ceiling. "…maybe if we're lucky, this thing will break off its hinges with so much weight crammed on it,"

Coop shrugged. "Maybe. …You kind of get used to it after a while, though."

Jamie rolled his eyes. "Yeah- maybe after your thighs fall asleep and your legs have gone numb."

"Speaking of which… maybe if I cross my leg like this…" Coop lifted his leg that trapped Jamie's, crossing it over his own, though the upper part of it was crushing it. "Think you could pull it out?"

"I… think I can," Jamie grunted, shifting his hips over, freeing his leg at last!

…but, only meant there was more room for Coop's thighs, pressing him against the side of the chair even more. "…um… well, at least your leg is free," the couch-potato commented, trying to focus on the bright side.

"*sigh* I guess that's a plus… on the downside, I think it fell asleep, and we're more stuck than earlier."

Coop sighed, looking at the TV. "…and there's nothing good on…" he looked at his friend. "So… seen any good movies out lately?"

Jamie gave him a hard look. Who else but his best friend would try to make small-talk during an uncomfortable moment? "Seriously?"

Coop shrugged once more. "Just thought I'd ask…"

The scrawny young man suppressed a smirk, shaking his head. "Let's… just get some sleep. Maybe Kiva will remember you're the only one who knows how to work Megas and get us out of here, tomorrow."

*crrrick!*

Coop looked around. "Did you hear that?" he asked.

"Hear what?" Jamie asked.

"It sounded like… someone cracking their knuckles; it sounded like it came from the stairs!"

Jamie shifted, hearing the chair creak. "Ah, it was just the chair, Coop. Just go back to sleep,"

"I can't sleep _now_ …"

Jamie sighed heavily- this night was dragging on longer than he expected, and Coop's childlike comments weren't helping it end any quicker. "Why not? You always manage to pass out easily around 1 AM,"

"For one thing, that sound freaked- I mean, alerted my instincts; Two, I think this chair is cutting off my blood-circulation; and finally, I woke up to finding my best friend crying in his sleep. Until at least two of the three problems are handled, I ain't sleeping!"

"Then I guess you're in for a long night,"

They both stared hard at each other for a minute or so; the TV, by this point, automatically shut off due to inactive receiver activity, casting the room in complete darkness, as well as total silence. Wind blowing outside was the only sound, as well as the occasional creaking of the house settling, otherwise the only noise to be heard would be the breathing of the duo.

"…You're still glaring, right?" Coop asked, realizing it was hard to have a stare-down when no one could see anything.

"Yeah… I think so. It feels like it," Jamie replied, arching an eyebrow. There was a long pause, before he felt something was off. "…Are you making a face at me?"

Coop, who happened to be doing so, replied- while keeping his tongue stuck out. "Ngoh!"

Jamie shook his head, rolling his eyes. "Reeeaaaal mature, Coop."

"Pfft! You're one to talk! You've been acting like a little kid all night!"

Jamie nudged him with his elbow. "Well… you started it!"

Coop wrapped his arm around Jamie's neck. "Yeah- and I'll finish it!"

If they were in better position, the duo would have brought their brawl to the floor, Coop being the victor (unless Jamie managed to scramble away in the dark), but wrestling in a chair proved a bit more challenging- especially since both were already exhausted from the tiresome night already. Mostly it just involved Coop keeping Jamie in a soft headlock and twisting the ski-cap on his head, while Jamie tried to pull away, elbowing him in the stomach.

After 45 seconds of this, they gave up. "Truce?" Jamie asked, sighing from exhaustion.

"…Truce," Coop agreed groggily, loosing his friend from the headlock, but keeping an arm around him.

At this point, Jamie could care less about their position- he just wanted to sleep. Plus, he wouldn't admit this out loud, his best friend made for a good pillow, giving him liberty to relax his head on his arm, both of them leaned back in the chair now, staring at the ceiling. Their arguing from earlier seemed to be fading farther into the past, serving to only be a funny memory that would long be forgotten, now that they were both calmed down… mostly due to being worn out from the whole situation.

"Next time… we should just do a quick _Mortal Kombat_ round to settle things,"

Jamie scoffed. "Yeah right, as much as you beat me in that game?" he decided to let his smirk show. "I vote seeing who can max out quicker in 30 minutes, grinding in _Ni No Kuni,"_

"Too late- got the whole team up to 99,"

Jamie gave him a look. "How about seeing who can go longest without dying in _The Last of Us_ , in guerrilla mode?"

Coop grinned. "Challenge, accepted."

Jamie smirked back. "Good."

Silence returned. The wind outside had toned down, now only being a subtle breeze.

"…Y'know, the pizza-guy never did arrive,"

"Meh, probably saw the giant robot out front and remembered what I did to Dominos last week, and high-tailed it." Coop replied.

"I bet a lot of delivery guys have to wait until we're gone before dropping anything off,"

"That would explain why several games I ordered off Amazon haven't arrived yet,"

They both chuckled, before going silent once more. The night was beginning to take its toll on them, as Coop began to drift off.

"…the nightmare was about my parents, by the way." Jamie's voice came out as a whisper, which would have gone unanswered if the room wasn't so quiet.

Coop looked at his friend- eyes having adjusted to the dark, he could see the solemn expression on his face. "Huh?"

"My mom and her dick-boyfriend kicked me out five years ago, after graduation. Loaded everything into my duffel bag and just locked me out of the house," he breathed in deep, emitting a soft sigh. "I figured it would happen- Mom was a teenager when she had me, she said, and married her boyfriend for money… on the condition that I moved out by the time I was 18, I guess. I dunno… I don't think either of them wanted a kid around, and only stuck with me until I was a legal age…"

Coop blinked. "Seriously? …Why didn't you say anything before?"

"I did… but you were in the middle of a Pac-Man game and probably didn't hear me. Just said I could crash at your place for the weekend again, before you beat the high score,"

Coop thought back. "Oh yeah… Huh, I wondered why so much of your stuff was set up in there."

Jamie scoffed. "Nah, I started leaving stuff in the guest-bedroom when I was ten- didn't want my mom or her boyfriend laying their hands on it. After that… well, I decided to just crash here whenever you wanted to hang, since we stayed up late anyway. Once Kiva moved in, I started sleeping on the couch after 'surrendering' the guest-bedroom. (…hope she hasn't been messing with my stuff)."

"Yeah, but… you don't stay over every night. Where do you go?"

"Meh. I look around for apartments to stay in, moving on to a new one before the month is out. …Someone busted me a few weeks back, so now I have to go through a background check. I've been looking for jobs- you know, just to earn some income- but people take one look at me and turn me down."

"Ouch."

"Yeah."

Silence. Again.

"Y'know, you could've just asked to crash here. It's no big deal," Coop stated.

"What about your mom?"

Coop shrugged. "Do some work around the house, and she'll let you stay- that's the deal she gave me, at least." He raised a finger, sternly. "And before you argue, I'm telling you now that after what I've found out tonight, there is no way I'm going to let you say-"

"Alright."

"Don't talk me out of it! I said you're going to- wait, what?"

"I said 'alright'. Like I said, I stay over here almost every night, anyway… the only problem would be fighting Kiva for the guest-bedroom."

Coop shrugged. "Alright. Cool." He wrapped his arm around Jamie's shoulders, rubbing his arm. "Looks like I've got myself a new roomie,"

Jamie scoffed, smirking. "Don't get too comfortable, dude- I'm not paying the rent,"

Coop rolled his eyes. "Sure- try convincing my mom of that,"

They lied there in silence, until Coop finally allowed himself to drift to sleep- arm still around Jamie- snoring softly. Jamie, in his exhausted state, found himself resting his head against his friend's abdomen- deciding he can worry about saving face in the morning- and, draping an arm across the expanding stomach, turned on his side to get more comfortable…

That's when he realized how loose he felt- by moving closer, he had the ability to slip out of the chair at long last! _Yes! Freedom! Woo-hoo!_ He exclaimed in his head, wanting to leap out of the chair and stretch out onto the couch…

His face was pressed against something damp, and he noticed the still-drying tear-stains on Coop's shirt. _Damn… how hard was I crying?_ He wondered, reflecting on the nightmare. It was a sad memory- even sadder, he could hardly recall any 'happy' ones with his mother. She'd throw him birthday parties up until he was eleven, but she never really interacted with him much; only buying him gifts, giving him money to get out of the house and give her some peace and quiet, or just watching television while he lounged around in his room. At first, he thought he had a sweet deal going… but once he was given the boot, he realized she never really taught him anything outside of walking and talking, her boyfriend being harsh on discipline and treating Jamie like he was a deal-breaker for their relationship.

Coop was the only one who ever welcomed him over. His mother was the one who told him to mind his manners and helped him with homework. …Heck, even now, Kiva was often giving him lectures about pulling his weight and thinking twice- even helping him out of a bad situation alongside Coop, the trio having each other's backs.

As he figured earlier, this was- and always would be- his home.

He looked over at the couch, then up at his best friend- the one who stuck by him… even when they were stuck in a tight situation tonight (no pun intended).

Then again, the couch offered more space, and he went to move over to it-

*creeaaak* went a floorboard from the steps.

"Eep!" Jamie gasped quietly, immediately clinging to Coop and listening carefully. No other sound erupted, and he figured it was probably just the house settling. He looked at Coop, then at the couch, then at the stairs…

 _Screw it._ Jamie thought, resting his head back on Coop's abdomen, using him as his own personal pillow; in a subconscious response, his friend held him tighter, keeping him close… the couch seemed to be too far away now…

Plus, he'd be getting his own room tomorrow. He could wait a little longer.

~XLR~

After making sure Jamie had drifted back to sleep, Kiva went back upstairs (making sure to watch her footing so not to upset a creaking step). She let out a relieved sigh- not just because her stealth paid off, but also because she knew the quarrel was over (for the night, at least), and that things would be alright with the two friends.

Her only problem was the fact that Jamie would be living in the house 24-7… though it only meant she'd have more time to study his potential- much less felt it would be interesting to see how he would 'fight' for the guest-bedroom.

The future warrior smiled- she'd give Jamie some slack, allowing him to have it; but she was going to make sure he earned it. After learning a little more about him, she wanted to make sure he found his inner-strength.

As she fell asleep that night, the only 'wondering' she did was deciding what kind of test she'd put Jamie through to claim his room.

~XLR~

 **A/N: Aaaaaand, I'm gonna stop here XD I had a couple endings in mind, involving Coop and Jamie fighting over the chair again only to find that Kiva claimed it, or the trio getting into Megas and smashing Jamie's ex-parents' house… but I decided to end it on a softer note this time.**

 **I know, the characters were OOC (it's hard to keep everyone in-character during a fluff), but hopefully I'll get better in time- especially since I plan on writing more Megas XLR fics like this (hey, once you start, it's hard to stop!)**

 **All in all, it wasn't too bad, right?**

 **Jamie: *barges in* COOP! I FOUND HIM!**

 ***the roof is ripped off, revealing Megas***

 **Coop: You are SO DEAD now!**

 **O_O Uh… review-don't flame-pray I live through this! *pushes past Jamie and flees***

 **Jamie: GET HIM! *pursues***

 ***end A/N involves the author running towards the sunset, with the cast on his tail***


End file.
